A problem with most agglomerated dishwasher detergents is the product's chlorine retension over extended periods of shelf life such as six months to a year. The chlorine content in the detergent is important because of the very desireable bleaching and germicidal action it provides during the wash cycle. A number of existing processes for agglomerating dishwasher detergent and simultaneous hydration of sodium tripolyphosphate involve steps which are conducted at temperatures in excess of 150.degree. F., such as, the temperature of sprayed solutions and of the bed of agglomerated material. Usually the source of chlorine is unstable at these temperatures and results in driving some chlorine from the initial mixture thereby reducing the chlorine content to an unacceptable level in the freshly prepared product. To avoid this aspect, it has been the practice to add the source of chlorine to the composition after the high temperature agglomeration step. It has been found, however, that with either of these methods, the chlorine stability of the product is far from desirable and with some dishwasher detergents the chlorine loss over a six month period can be as high as 40 to 60%.
The process of this invention maintains the bed temperature during the agglomeration of the detergent constituents at which the chlorine source is relatively stable to thereby retain the available chlorine in the formed agglomerate. The agglomerate is treated with a surfactant and coated with a silicate to lock in the available chlorine and inhibit it's loss from the dishwasher detergent over extended periods of shelf life.